Various boat hulls designs are known in the art. Various designs may have certain advantages and disadvantages. Hulls with transverse steps have certain performance benefits and hulls with longitudinal steps generally have a softer ride and tend to be very stable.
Certain hull designs comprising a combination of transverse steps and longitudinal steps are known, such as for example, as described in U.S. Pat. No. 8,210,116 (Campbell et al.), which also discloses longitudinal “amas,” also referred to as a “pair of outer side hulls,” that cause entrapment of air under the hull. Designs with longitudinal retaining rails, amas or other longitudinal structures intended to “trap” (i.e. restrict transverse movement of) air and/or water under the hull are often referred to as “entrapment hulls.”
There is, however, a continued desire in the art to design boat hulls that provide desired or optimal performance.